Ponderings by Dan Ponder

From the moment we are born we start changing.  As children the changes come quickly in every way possible.  Six months can bring huge shifts physically, emotionally, and mentally.  Along the way, the teenage years and puberty come along, bringing changes we don’t even understand. We find our way in high school, maybe college or…

For over 1,400 years a cathedral dedicated to St. Peter has stood on the highest point in London.  350 years ago, a great fire swept through London leaving thousands homeless and destroying much of the fourth cathedral on that site which had been built 500 years earlier.   This fire allowed Sir Christopher Wren, Britain’s…

For the past two weeks Mary Lou and I have enjoyed visiting some amazing places in Switzerland, Germany, France, Netherlands and England.  Some places we had visited before and some were new to one or both of us.  We have truly seen some wonders during this trip, but I continue to be amazed at how…

We were unlikely roommates when we moved in together the Spring quarter of our Freshman year at Auburn in 1972.  Bill was from Nashville, Tennessee and I was from Cottonwood, Alabama.  I was studying Agricultural Economics and Bill was in Textile Engineering.  We didn’t have much in common from our past, but we had everything…

They started popping up a year or so ago, sprouting ten times faster than new Dollar Generals stores across the panhandle of Florida.  You can’t avoid them any longer, no matter that you might consider them some sort of eye pollution.   Think of it like a man-made variety of Kudzu, impossible to get rid of…

The night was delightful, much less humid than the day before.  Mary Lou and I enjoyed the setting sun as a breeze blew up the Savannah River, cooling us as we sat at the table on a rooftop bar.   We discussed a variety of things that came to mind, including an article that ML…

I have seen a lot of different events happen while flying on airplanes.  I have seen a person have a heart attack.  I have flown with Lady Bird and Lynda Bird Johnson, in addition to several famous politicians and celebrities.   This past week I watched a passenger get thrown off a plane before the door…

My mother always told me that a person was lucky if they had five great friends in their life.  I never asked her if that included dogs because if so I have been richly blessed.   I laid to rest the last of the three great dogs of my life this past week.  Harry was…

They say that first impressions mean the most.  I am not sure who “they” are, but I have long believed that first impressions are a very good indicator of what is to come.  In that case, I have a good feeling about Bainbridge State College moving forward. I met Dr. Stuart Rayfield last night at…

My father was a veteran that served during the Korean War.  He was fortunate enough to return, have children and grandchildren and become successful in almost all phases of his life.  He passed away 15 years ago and has been on my mind lately, not just because of Memorial Day, but also because of my…